New Jersey

New Jersey probate runs through the Surrogate's Court in each county, headed by an elected
County Surrogate. Uncontested estates never see a Superior Court judge — the Surrogate
admits the will and issues letters testamentary. Contested matters go to the Probate Part
of the Superior Court.

You must wait ten days

A will cannot be probated until the eleventh day after death. New Jersey is one of the few
states with a mandatory waiting period, and it catches executors who arrive at the Surrogate's
office the same week expecting to start. Plan around it.

The inheritance tax survived the estate tax

This is the thing to know about New Jersey. The estate tax was repealed for deaths from
2018, but the inheritance tax remains, and it is charged on the beneficiary according
to their relationship to the deceased:

Confirm current rates and bands with the Division of Taxation before relying on them.

Nieces and nephews are Class D, not Class C. A childless person leaving everything to a
nephew is arranging a 15% tax bill they very likely did not intend.

Waivers before assets move

New Jersey banks and transfer agents commonly require a tax waiver before releasing assets,
even to a Class A beneficiary. Build that into the timeline.

A New Jersey will must be in writing, signed by the testator, and signed by two
witnesses who each saw the testator sign or heard them acknowledge the signature. The
testator must be 18 or older and of sound mind.

Holographic wills are valid

New Jersey accepts a will whose signature and material provisions are in the testator's own
handwriting, without witnesses. As elsewhere, valid does not mean advisable — a handwritten
will still leaves out the residue clause, the alternate executor, and the bond waiver.

New Jersey also has a curative provision: a court may admit a document that fails the
formalities if there is clear and convincing evidence that the deceased intended it as their
will. It is a rescue, not a plan, and it costs far more than doing it properly.

Self-prove it

Attach a self-proving affidavit executed before a notary. The Surrogate can then admit the will
without producing a witness — which is the ordinary New Jersey practice and worth conforming to.

Draft around the inheritance tax

This is where a New Jersey will earns its fee. Because Class D beneficiaries pay 15% or 16%
from the first dollar, who you name changes what they actually receive by a wide margin. A
gift to a niece, nephew, cousin, godchild, friend or unmarried partner is taxed at the top
rate. If that is your intention, at least make it an informed one — and consider whether the
tax should fall on that gift or on the residue, because the will can direct which.

Also

• Waive bond expressly and name an alternate executor.
• A surviving spouse has an elective share whatever the will says.
• Review after a marriage, divorce, birth or a move into New Jersey.

Yes, and New Jersey is one of the most precisely specified states in the country. Commission
comes in two separate parts under N.J.S.A. 3B:18-14.

Corpus commission

On the value of the estate's corpus — broadly the principal assets:

Income commission

Plus 6% of all income the estate receives during administration — interest, dividends, rent.
This is separate from and additional to the corpus commission, and executors routinely forget
to claim it.

Confirm current rates against the statute before relying on them.

More than one executor

Where there are multiple executors, additional commission is allowed, though it is not simply
multiplied — the statute and the court control how much the estate pays in total for having
more than one.

How it is approved

Commission may be taken with the written consent of all beneficiaries, or on court
allowance. Get the consent in writing. A beneficiary who is a minor or cannot consent means a
formal accounting.

The interaction with inheritance tax

Executor's commission is a deductible administration expense for New Jersey inheritance tax
but taxable income to the executor. Where the executor is a Class A beneficiary — exempt
from inheritance tax anyway — taking a commission converts an untaxed inheritance into taxable
income for no benefit. Many New Jersey family executors waive it for exactly that reason. Where
the executor is Class C or D, the arithmetic can go the other way. Ask an accountant.

A New Jersey executor is reimbursed from the estate for the reasonable expenses of
administration, separately from the statutory commissions. Most are also deductible against
the inheritance tax, so recording them carefully is worth real money.

Normally claimable — and generally deductible

• Funeral, burial or cremation, the headstone, and a reasonable reception.
• Surrogate's Court fees, certified letters testamentary, certified death certificates.
• Attorney's fees, accountant's fees, and preparation of the final Form 1040, any Form 1041,
  and the New Jersey inheritance tax return.
• Appraisals of real property, vehicles, jewellery, art and collections.
• Carrying costs on estate property until sale: insurance, New Jersey property tax — which
  is among the highest in the country and does not pause — utilities, security, maintenance,
  lawn care and snow removal.
• Condominium or homeowners' association fees.
• Cleaning, clearing, storing, moving and shipping contents, including a shore property.
• Travel on estate business at a reasonable rate.
• Bond premiums where the will did not waive bond.

Normally not claimable

• The executor's lost wages, meals near home, or personal spending — the commissions cover that.
• Costs run up for one beneficiary's convenience rather than the estate's.
• Improvements beyond preparing a property for sale as it stands.
• Anything without a receipt.

The rule that decides it

Open an estate bank account and run everything through it. In New Jersey there is a direct
financial incentive to be meticulous: a documented administration expense reduces the
inheritance tax base, so a receipt you fail to keep can be taxed at up to 16% depending on who
inherits.

Most New Jersey estates are administered by a family member with a lawyer's help, and the
county Surrogate system makes uncontested estates straightforward. A bank trust department or
an attorney serving as executor is worth the cost in specific cases.

Consider a professional when

• The beneficiaries are Class C or Class D and the inheritance tax planning is substantial —
  siblings, nieces and nephews, an unmarried partner, or a mixture. Getting the apportionment
  clause and the funding order right can be worth more than the fee.
• The estate holds an operating business, or rental or shore property that has to keep
  running through a season.
• There is conflict among the beneficiaries, or a will contest looks likely, which moves the
  matter to the Probate Part of the Superior Court.
• A beneficiary is a minor or incapacitated, so a trust runs for years.
• The named executor lives out of state. New Jersey permits it, but the Surrogate's office
  is a county office, the tax waivers require local follow-up, and the property does not manage
  itself.
• There is real property in more than one state, needing ancillary probate.

What it costs

Corporate fiduciaries charge a negotiated percentage, usually referenced to the statutory
corpus and income commissions, often with a minimum annual fee. Attorneys generally bill
hourly. Ask for either in writing.

Middle ground

Appoint a family member, waive bond, and let them retain a probate attorney and an
accountant at the estate's expense. Engage the accountant early — the inheritance tax return
and the waivers drive the whole timeline.

A named executor who does not want the job can renounce before the Surrogate, which is a
simple filing if done before they start acting.